Registrations for Red Cross swimming lessons will be available during the Health Fair in the Alliance High gymnasium on Saturday, March 21 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Payment of $30.00 is required at the time of registration. The registration form and a complete schedule are available on the City of Alliance website at www.cityofalliance.net under Cultural and Leisure Services Department. Please bring the most recently issued Red Cross card and completed registration form with you to the Health Fair to expedite the registration process. No early registrations or phone registrations will be accepted. The following dates have been assigned for each level:

5 year olds July 6 through July 10

Level One

June 22 through June 27

July 27 through August 1

Level Two

June 8 through June 13

July 20 through July 25

Level Three

June 22 through June 27

July 27 through August 1

Level Four

June 8 through June 13

July 20 through July 25

Level Five

July 6 through July 17

]]>http://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/03/12/red-cross-swimming-lesson-registration/feed/0DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME STARTS 2 AM SUNDAYhttp://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/03/06/daylight-savings-time-starts-2-am-sunday/
http://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/03/06/daylight-savings-time-starts-2-am-sunday/#commentsFri, 06 Mar 2015 20:20:55 +0000http://www.panhandlepost.com/?p=14079 ...Read More]]> Daylight Savings Time starts Saturday night and we lose an hour of sleep. The official changeover occurs at 2 a-m Sunday, but most people adjust their clocks, watches, and appliances with timers before going to bed.

Those who forget the adage “spring forward, fall back” will be an hour late for church, work or other events Sunday morning.

Deputy Nebraska State Fire Marshall and Chadron Fire Chief Pat Gould says it’s also a good time to change batteries in smoke detectors…and he says to not even bother checking whether the batteries are good or not because trying to save a few cents by not replacing them could prove to be fatally penny wise and pound foolish.

Statistics show that almost 1 out of every 5 smoke alarms in an American home…about 25-million…don’t work, while another 4-1/2-million homes don’t even have smoke alarms.

Gould says one reason smoke alarms are lifesavers is that most home fatalities occur when people are asleep, between 10 pm and 6 am.

In addition to changing the batteries once a year, he recommends testing smoke alarms at least once a month, vacuuming them regularly, and replacing the entire alarm every 10 years.

Gould also suggests that families develop and rehearse fire escape routes from the home, and selecting a place for all family members to meet if they ever do need to flee their home.

]]>http://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/03/06/daylight-savings-time-starts-2-am-sunday/feed/0IRS CALLING? NOT LIKELY…http://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/01/16/irs-calling-not-likely/
http://www.panhandlepost.com/2015/01/16/irs-calling-not-likely/#commentsFri, 16 Jan 2015 20:31:31 +0000http://www.panhandlepost.com/?p=57108 ...Read More]]>We took a call this afternoon at the office from a loyal KCOW listener who told us about receiving a phone call from someone claiming to be a representative of the Internal Revenue Service. Our listener was smart enough to identify the call as a scam–an attempt to collect personal information (and, perhaps, arrange a payment).

These types of phone scams are, unfortunately, extremely common. Throughout the year you might get suspicious sounding calls from thickly-accented would-be thieves. Perhaps they’re demanding payment on a loan you never took out. Or, they could be masquerading as an operator from the Windows help desk. The goal is always the same: to scare you into giving up personal information or allowing access to your bank account.

Since the IRS scam is especially popular this time of year, let’s address it head-on. According to the official IRS website:

The IRS will always send taxpayers a written notification of any tax due via the U.S. mail. The IRS never asks for credit card, debit card or prepaid card information over the telephone.

The reason thieves keep trying the IRS phone scam–and many of them succeed– can be expressed in one word: fear. Again, from the IRS website:

Potential victims are threatened with deportation, arrest, having their utilities shut off, or having their driver’s licenses revoked. Callers are frequently insulting or hostile – apparently to scare their potential victims.

If you get one of these calls–or any call you suspect of being a phone scam–the best thing to do is simply hang up. Or, if you have caller ID and a laptop handy, Google the phone number. There’s a variety of “scam watch” websites that might be able to confirm your suspicions.

The bottom line: this tax season, if Uncle Sam thinks you owe him some money, he’ll do his business via the U.S. Mail.

A November convention returns Thursday, November 6th as KCOW, Double Q Country and B94.7 host The 2014 Alliance Ladies Fair. This year’s event will be at the Alliance High School Commons Area, with hours from 5:00pm to 8:00pm.

The main attraction of each year’s event is the opportunity to see what’s new and exciting from exhibitors offering a wide variety of products and services. And since many exhibitors will be selling their wares at the event, it’s a perfect chance to do some early Christmas shopping.

After 4 weeks of kitchen competition, it’s time for the finals! Our four finalists are Cheryl Johnson, Mary Lore, Colleen Busch, and Glenda Pratt. And these are the key ingredients they’ll be working with

-bananas-wafer cookies-whipped topping-coffee

As usual, each finalist’s recipe has to contain all four of these ingredients. Bring your culinary creation to the KCOW studios on West 10th St. Monday morning between 7:30am and 9:00am to be judged by our expert panel. If your submission consists of individual servings, we will need 6 of them so all 5 judges (and our host) get one.

The finalist whose dish is voted tops by our judges will receive a $250 shopping spree at the GroceryKart in Alliance!

Good luck and happy cooking from KCOW and our “Cooking Wars” sponsors:

Week Four of KCOW’s Cooking Wars contest is history, and we have a winner!

In a very close race, our judges awarded 1st place to Glenda Pratt, whose Cracker Crumb Chicken with Fruit and Nut Quinoa was a big hit!

Glenda wins a Sam and Louies gift certificate and now has a spot reserved in our final showdown for a $250 Grocery Kart shopping spree. Other Cooking Wars sponsors include The Steakhouse and Homestead Diner

The four key ingredients for our Championship Challenge, which is for our four finalists only, will be announced this Friday between 9:00 and 10:00am on KCOW.

KCOW’s “Cooking Wars” contest is reaching its climax! This is your last chance to qualify for our final showdown, and these are the key ingredients you’ll have to work with:

-saltine crackers-chicken-cashews-cranberries

Your recipe has to contain all four of these ingredients. Bring your culinary creation to the KCOW studios on West 10th St. Monday morning between 7:30am and 9:00am to be judged by our expert panel. If your submission consists of individual servings, we will need 6 of them so all 5 judges (and our host) get one.

We have great weekly prizes for our cooking warriors, and a fantastic grand prize: a $250 shopping spree at the GroceryKart in Alliance!

Good luck and happy cooking from KCOW and our “Cooking Wars” sponsors:

Week Three of KCOW’s Cooking Wars contest saw The Other White Meat take center stage.

Of the three dishes submitted this week, the judges awarded 1st place (by one point!) to Colleen Busch. Her Corn Chip Crusted Pork Loin with Warm Apple Vanilla Bean Compote contained all four key ingredients–pork, corn chips, beans and apples. The judges praised the dish for its flavor, appearance and use of ingredients.

Colleen wins a Westside Event Center gift certificate and now has a spot reserved in our final showdown for a $250 Grocery Kart shopping spree. Other Cooking Wars sponsors include The Steakhouse, Homestead Diner and Sam and Louies.

The four key ingredients for next week’s challenge will be announced this Friday between 9:00 and 10:00am on KCOW.

KCOW’s “Cooking Wars” contest continues! This culinary challenge offers great rewards for savvy chefs! For our third week, these are the key ingredients:

-pork-corn chips-beans-apples

Your recipe has to contain all four of these ingredients. Bring your culinary creation to the KCOW studios on West 10th St. Monday morning between 7:30am and 9:00am to be judged by our expert panel. If your submission consists of individual servings, we will need 6 of them so all 5 judges (and our host) get one.

We have great weekly prizes for our cooking warriors, and a fantastic grand prize: a $250 shopping spree at the GroceryKart in Alliance!

Good luck and happy cooking from KCOW and our “Cooking Wars” sponsors: